This angered a lot of people because all Taiwanese children, including their Taiwanese half siblings and those whose parent(s) are from other foreign countries, have to work really hard to pass the senior high school/university entrance exam or queue for a place in a state nursery for years without the guarantee for a place. It is unfair that those Chinese children can choose schools they like. If they want to get into a top school, all they have to do is to register their residence within that catchment area.

If we look elsewhere, overseas students in the UK universities have to pay about three times as much as the tuition for home students because their parents had never paid taxes to the UK government which contributed to the UK education system. As far as I know, non-EU foreign students who changed their resident status through marriage or their parent’s marriage and British citizens who have not lived in the UK for a long time are not immediately eligible for home fees upon entry either. They have to reside in the UK for a number of years before they can be counted as home students by the universities. Besides, foreign students are assessed under the same criteria as the home students. No allowance or preferential treatment would be given to any foreign students. Another related example was that a friend of mine who is a qualified medical doctor in the UK gave up on the idea of moving to Australia a few years ago because the UK medical licence doesn’t count in Australia and he would have to do the training and take the exam again in Australia. It seems that most countries heavily protect certain professions and their education systems. Why would the Ma government give Chinese spouses’ (non-tax paying before going to Taiwan) children from a previous relationship before going to Taiwan preferential treatment? Why can’t they be treated like everyone else?

After being heavily criticised, the MoE changed the regulation. Those in the final year of junior high schools have to take the entrance exam without any preferential treatment. Those already in the 2nd or 3rd year of senior high in China can choose 5 schools in their area and take the transfer exam after an assessment.

I don’t know whether this is the end of it because this government has been pretty good at saying one thing in public and doing another in secrecy. So I’ll keep an eye on it for any future development. What we really have to ask is WHY Ma’s administration came up with this idea in the first place? What are they trying to achieve? Was this actually part of one of those secret deals with the Chinese, signed without the public or parliamentary scrutiny?

Some may think that the number of Chinese spouses with children from previous relationships before entering Taiwan is not large and therefore there’s no need to panic. But I just can’t be complacent about this.

First of all, however small the number may be, this regulation, if put in place, places those Chinese children (minority) above ALL Taiwanese children (majority). This creates a class system in the society, which is similar to the way the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) used to reserve the majority of the government posts, civil servants positions, military positions, teaching posts etc., especially at the managerial level, for mainlanders and place them in priority for welfare. What’s worse in this case is that those children are from a country that has never given up on their threat to Taiwan.

Furthermore, it is difficult to check up on the authenticity of records from China. If this gate is open, there is no guarantee whether some Chinese spouses would have suddenly ‘adopted’ a couple of children in China.

Finally, in a few years time, those Chinese children may well become Taiwanese citizens and have the right to vote. Over time, combined with other Chinese nationals who enter Taiwan through other means, they can become a crucial minority in any election and referendum. Besides, it is impossible to know whether some of them will be spying for China or taking on any other activities that jeopardise Taiwan’s interests.

Update: This is the link to a scanned image of the official letter sent by MoE to Tainan City Government in relation to the new regulation. Tim Maddog commented on how vague the government response was, e.g. “Chen said, adding that under the current regulations, it would be impossible for Chinese children to enter university in Taiwan unless they have a Taiwanese ID.” (OK… but are there going to be new regulations?) or “not being the law so far” (Right… is it going to become law, say, next week?)…

Maybe some people will be (or are already pessimistic. “are you saying that I am?” :-)
Do Taiwanese care? (Taiwanese in Taiwan)
Did Taiwanese double check when the government answered as today, to RSF? (press freedom)
Did Taiwanese even know about your point?
I could add more questions…
Think about that…
Maybe a grey sky bring grey comments…
I could add more… but I believe you got my point…
Oh, one more: how to explain people are still voting for obviously corrupted people, or their wife (or husband)?
As a guess, it’s what I can say :-)
I do believe you got my point…
The rest is Blah Blah Blah…
Don’t you think so?

I do get what you mean :) Well, some people care; some care a lot but there are also quite a few oblivious ones or who simply can’t be bothered… It’s probably not just the sky. It depends on those who surround us as well. Those who want to make a difference can only do their best… I just don’t know whether their collective ‘best’ can create enough change in time.

Sorry, I wrote very quickly (too quickly?) my previous comment before joining a meeting and obviously it was not very clear.
In fact, what I wanted to express is that in one hand, people who care about Taiwan can’t do more than writing and in the other hand, most of the Taiwanese are really passive or just playing the game for a short term benefit.
Conclusion: the trend will no change.
Maybe I am too pessimistic…
Anyway, I always enjoy reading your posts.
:-)

I just want to say thank you for writing about Taiwan and trying to get the world attention. I found your blog interesting and I am happy to see that other people actually care. Taiwanese care about their country and in every country, including the U.S., they are a lot of people just don’t care. However, the U.S. is fortunate because ‘functional’ political system exist already. Not saying that the U.S. does everything right and should be the model Taiwan follow, however, Taiwan is a young democracy and it requires time to grow.

I found your blog earlier today, and I got to say your articles are great! I have gone through a few articles, and it makes me wonder why many Taiwanese can’t really see what’s going on, or simply don’t care. Maybe it’s like what I read, if you tell a lie a hundred times, people will believe it is the truth, and the KMT is real good at that, hypocrisy that is. Reading your posts gives me more hope for a better future for taiwan, afterall the more people care, the more chances there are. Thanks and keep up the great work!!

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Taiwan, also known as Formosa, is NOT part of China. The majority of the population see themselves as Taiwanese, NOT Chinese. Taiwan is a democracy and therefore people there do not wish to be ruled by China, a dictatorship with poor human rights record and about 2,000 missiles aiming at Taiwan.